Aftershock

Ready, Steady, Go!

Despite living below the surface, Etian could tell the sun hadn't had a chance to rise when Coco nudged him with her foot. He groaned under his breath, hoping it came off as groggy rather than irritable.

"Need something?" He questioned in a whisper after Coco stopped poking his shoulder. By the shuffling sound of clothes on the tatami, he figured she had withdrawn her legs from his personal space.

"Yeah," Coco whispered back once she had settled her knees against her chest. "Are you gonna be going away?" To this, Etian turned over on his side in order to face his sister.

"Going away...how?" He asked with a bit of hesitation. The thought of being in Splatsville more than his home was exciting, yet he knew Coco would be the most lonely. Coco shuffled her feet and stared at the ground.

"Like, living up there," She replied, pointing a finger towards the ceiling. "Madre told me you'd do those fighting things everyone else does."

"What?" Etian thought for a second before fully responding. "I mean...I guess I will be fighting, but I'll still come back here every day."

"I thought you were gonna live with your friends, though," Coco mentioned as she folded her arms on top of her knees. Etian almost scoffed at the idea.

"I don't think Loretta would let me," He said with a slight grin. "Plus, I don't really know them too well. So...I don't really want to go as far as living with them just yet."

"So, you're not leaving?" Coco's ears seemed to perk up as she brought her gaze to Etian's.

"No, no, I'm not," Etian replied with a sheepish smile as he picked himself up from his futon and sat with crossed legs. "I just might be gone for more hours than usual, but I'll be home at the end of the day and whatnot."

"Good," Coco said with a slight pout. "Because I still wanna find out what that abandoned building is." Etian scoffed at that.

"I thought I already told you; it used to be a hidden place for those weird fish years ago," He explained with a humorous tone as he waved his hands around when the "weird fish" were mentioned. Coco giggled.

"Yeah, but that means it's super interesting," She said, unfolding herself from her reserved position. "What if there's still some of those ink tanks in there? There could be a monster that we don't even know about."

"You mean the ones with the experiments?" Etian asked. Upon seeing Coco nod enthusiastically, he grinned. "Nah, those got freed over a decade ago. Plus, they weren't monsters, they were people just like you and me who got kidnapped."

"Well, maybe there could be one more person in there!" Coco objected as she tried to keep her voice to a whisper. Etian merely sighed with a smile at her words.

"I will never understand your fascination for scary things," He laughed.